Buddh International Circuit
Buddh International Circuit |location=Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India |length=5.173 km (3.214 mi) |turns=16 |record=1:24.119 (Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull RB10, 2013) |firstgp=2011 Indian Grand Prix |lastgp=2013 Indian Grand Prix }} The Buddh International Circuit, located near Noida, India, is a racing circuit built in 2011, and was the home of the Indian Grand Prix. Circuit History The Buddh International Circuit was designed by Hermann Tilke and built in 2011 by the Jaiprakash Associates construction company with the intention of hosting an event in India for the first time in 2011. Following several months of consultation with teams and drivers, the circuit opened in October 2011, just two weeks before the opening race. Circuit Layouts The Buddh circuit sits on mostly flat land about an hour southeast of India's capital, New Delhi. It is part of a planned development called ""Jaypee Sports City", which seems to be running out of money. Buddh has only had one configuration. The track was designed by the Hermann Tilke group, after receiving feedback from several drivers. The course is somewhat like an elongated capital "Z". It starts with a pit straight that has a 600m long pit lane, one of the longest in racing. The straight ends with a 90° right turn, then a gently sweeping left curve, ending in an almost 180° right, leading onto the back straight. This straight is almost 1.1km long, parallel to the pit straight and undulates with the natural terrain. At the end is another sharp right (known as Turn 4), with plenty of room for passing. After another medium-length straight, the cars turn left (at Turn 5) into a 1.5 km long technical section with 11 corners, including a triple-apex right that is reminiscent of Istanbul Park's turn eight. The last corner of the technical section, Turn 15, leads onto another medium straight, adjacent to the one between turns 4 and 5. The last corner, Turn 16, is a 135° bend back onto the pit straight. There are several options for altering the circuit. A wider, sweeping bend cuts to the inside of Turn 4, and is designed for motorcycles. The option of cutting the circuit into two smaller ones is made by short link roads between the Turn 4-5 straight and the Turn 15-16 straight. And two alternate corners are built into the technical section. The track was built with 80,000 seats, with the capability of expansion to well over 100,000. But with the Grand Prix likely off of the calendar permanently, this track will probably become a white elephant, like Turkey and Korea. Event history The following is a list of Formula One World Championship events held at the Buddh International Circuit: At the 2013 race, the government of Uttar Pradesh, the state where the track is located, notified Formula One and the FIA that automobile racing would be classified as "entertainment", instead of "sport", and would be taxed at a much higher rate. Because of that policy, no international events have been held at Buddh since 2014. Notes Category:Circuits Category:Indian Grand Prix Category:Former circuits Category:Circuits that Débuted in 2011